CLIMBING
EVEREST
Most climbers attempt Everest
during April and May. In the
winter, low temperatures and
hurricane force winds make
climbing difficult. Between June
and September, summer
monsoons create intense storms
and violent precipitation.
From home and back again, most
trips to the top over Everest take
about two and a half months. (1) The success rate is 29%. How
many of us will make it to the
summit?
DAY 1
Kathmandu, Nepal
We leave San Francisco at
an elevation of 13 feet for
Kathmandu the capitol of
Nepal at an elevation of
4593 feet. Here we will
get supplies and travel
paperwork. (2) How much have we
gone up in elevation on
our travels?
DAY 3
Lukla, Nepal
Situated at 9,383 ft., it is
a popular place for
visitors to the Himalayas
near Mount Everest to
arrive. This will be last
plane ride of the trip to
the summit.
(3) How many more feet
are we going to have to
climb to the summit at
29,035 ft.? DAY 4-12
Base Camp
From Lukla it will take us over a
week to reach Base Camp is
located at 17,700 feet. During
the spring climbing season Base
Camp houses about 300 people,
including climbers, Sherpas,
doctors, scientists and other
support staff.
We will acclimate and recover in
Base Camp for several days.
During this time we will practice
some climbing skills before
heading up the Khumbu Icefall.
(4) How much higher are we now
compared to where we started
(9,383 ft.) our trek to base
camp?
Khumbu Icefall
DAY 18-22
First rotation up to Camp 1
and then Camp 2. We will
ascend from Basecamp
(17,700 ft.) over the
Khumbu Icefall to Camp 1
(19,900 ft.) and back. We will then ascend from
Basecamp to Camp 2 (21,300
ft.) and back. We will rest at
basecamp for a few days
(5) How much total
ascending and descending
will be do in these 4 days?
(6) How close did we get to
the summit at 29,035 ft.?
DAY 26-30
Khumbu Icefall Ladders
Second rotation up to
Camp 2 and a hike to
Camp 3. We will ascend
from Basecamp (17,700
ft.) over the Khumbu
Icefall again to Camp 2
(21,300 ft.) and Camp 3
(24,000 ft.) and back. (7) How many total feet of
ascending and descending
will we do in these days?
DAY 31-38
Dingboche
Rest and recovery. We will descend to the village of
Dingboche at 14,470 ft. to get a well deserved rest before
the summit push.
(8) How many feet did we descend from Basecamp? DAY 39-58
Everest Summit
Summit attempt (29,035 ft.). We
will be watching the weather
closely in anticipation of our
summit attempt. The typical
summit window is in the last
weeks of May. (9) How many feet are we into the
death zone (26,000ft.)?
(10) How many feet have we
trekked since landing in Lukla?
(11) We are now t the highest land
point on earth. How many feet
above the lowest point are we?
Mariana Trench (36,070 ft.)